


Finding Home

by insanity_times_ten



Series: Home [2]
Category: Six - Marlow/Moss
Genre: Angst, Anxiety, Family Fluff, Fluff, Foster home, Found Family, Multi, Panic Attacks, Previous Abuse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-02
Updated: 2021-03-01
Packaged: 2021-03-04 22:09:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 16,887
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25033732
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/insanity_times_ten/pseuds/insanity_times_ten
Summary: Anne and Cathy think they know what they’re getting into when they choose to become foster parents, but a call one night changes their lives forever.
Relationships: Anne Boleyn/Catherine Parr
Series: Home [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1812958
Comments: 42
Kudos: 82





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [PikaPals16](https://archiveofourown.org/users/PikaPals16/gifts), [UnchartedRaider](https://archiveofourown.org/users/UnchartedRaider/gifts).



> Hey look, that new coming home fic I promised! In the same universe as coming home (duh) but Anne and Cathy are in their early twenties now (and married!).  
> Oh, I should probably mention that the whole story is gonna be in Anne’s POV.  
> Happy reading!

“Wait, Anne,” Cathy says as we walk out of the building we had just spent the past two hours in.

“Yes, dear?”

“Wasn’t that our last class?”

I stop walking to think. “Oh my god, you’re right!” 

Cathy gasps. “We can be foster mommies now!” She begins to jump up and down excitedly. We had decided quite some time ago that we wanted to be foster parents, and it had taken just over a year to complete all the requirements.

“You know what this means?” I ask once we are in the car. 

“Ice cream?” Cathy’s eyes light up like a little kid.

“No. Well, maybe. I was thinking more along the lines of an IKEA trip to finally pick out the bed for the kids’ room.”

Cathy claps her hands. “Yes! But first, ice cream?”

I roll my eyes, causing Cathy to begin to pout. “Oh, alright.” I turn on the car.

Once Cathy had had her coffee-flavored ice cream (“You have a problem- no, two problems,” I always say) and was dangerously sugared up, we decide that it is time to take on IKEA. The issue isn’t what to get, it’s which one to get. We already know that bunk beds are a good idea for the room, but Cathy is indecisive. Hopefully, the sugar from the ice cream will speed up her thought processes.

“Well, I don’t really want the child to have to sleep on a twin bed…” Boy, was I wrong. 

“Cathy, honey, they don’t have that here!” I am starting to get irritated. “Not unless you want a loft bed.”

“That would be fine…”

“Thank god!”

“...but what if they have a fear of heights? Or what if there’s two kids?”

“Oh my goodness, you’re impossible. Just pick one. I don’t think we have the space for anything but twin beds anyway.”

Cathy sighs. “I guess you’re right.” She takes another look around this section of the store. She finally decides on bunk beds with a dark wood frame. She picks out gray bedding, since we’re trying to keep the room more on the gender-neutral side, decoration-wise.

After we arrive home (and Cathy “helps” me put the beds together), she turns to me. “Annie,” she says, having recovered from her sugar rush, “do you think we’re ready?”

“I think we’re about as ready as we can get,” I reply.

“But...what if they have panic attacks?”

“Kit has had panic attacks and anxiety as long as I can remember, and I had a couple pretty bad ones when I was little. I think we’re covered on that.”

“What about food allergies?”

“We can read nutrition labels. Don’t get your panties in a twist, we’ll figure this out.”

“You’re sure?”

“I’m nearly positive,” I say. 

It was only a couple of days before we were pulled from a late-night-movie-induced trance by the sound of a phone. 

Cathy is the one to get up from the couch and go find whichever phone is ringing. She comes back with my phone in her hand and holds it out to me. I fumble with it for a bit before actually answering it. “H’lo?”

“Uh, hello, is this the...Aragon-Seymour-Parr household?” the woman on the other end of the line asks.

I chuckle. “Yes, Anne speaking.”

“Oh, fabulous. Is your partner nearby?”

“Yes, my  _ wife _ is right here. Should I put you on speaker?”

“I would consider that a good idea.” I press the button to put her on speakerphone.

“Alright, we can both hear you now.”

“Okay. Now, don’t scream, I’ve got children here that would probably like to sleep, but we have an emergency placement for you if you think you’re ready for a child.”

I look to Cathy, who nods. “We can be there within the next forty-five minutes, if that’s okay,” I say. 

“Oh, yes, that’s absolutely perfect. I’ll see you then.” She ends the call.

Cathy turns to me. “Well,” she says. “I guess we’d better go, then?”

“Not yet,” I reply, “because unlike you, I am not fully clothed.” I gesture to my bare legs. 

“For the love of god, Anne, go put on some pants so we can get going!” Cathy sounds a mix of excited and frustrated, so I decide that it’ll be safest not to argue with her. 

Once I put on a pair of shorts, I go downstairs and see that Cathy is already in the car. She doesn’t drive, at least she doesn’t like to, so naturally that leaves half-asleep me to the task.

When we finally pull up to the agency building, Cathy all but sprints inside while I turn off the car. 

“Oh, good, you’re here. I spoke with you on the phone, I believe, my name is Maisie. I’m here when everyone else goes home and watch out for emergency placements. It’s a bit lonely, but I don’t really mind…” She trails off. “Anyway, I’m sure you’re ready to meet your placement. She’s on the older end of the foster care system, but she’s quite traumatized nonetheless. I’m afraid I’m not allowed to disclose the situation she’s come to us in. Be quiet, I think she might be sleeping.” Maisie opens a door into what seems to be a playroom, and I am about to ask where the girl is when I see a small blonde girl huddled in the corner, rocking back and forth.

I watch as Cathy goes to sit on the floor by the girl, who scoots away from Cathy. “Don’t,” I say softly when Cathy tries to move closer to the poor child. “Let me handle this. I know what it’s like.” I sit on the floor in front of her rather than next to her. “Hey…” I turn to Maisie. “What’s her name?”

“Oh, sorry, guess that slipped my mind! Her name is Joan.”

“Hey, Joan,” I say. “I’m going to put my hand on your shoulder, is that okay?” She doesn’t say no, but she also doesn’t give consent, so I don’t try to touch her. “Okay…” I try to think of other techniques I’ve used with Kit. “Um… How about this? Try to use my voice to ground yourself. You’re safe, okay? I want you to know you’re safe and that no one here is trying to or wants to hurt you. My name is Anne, and my wife Cathy is sitting on that chair. We want to take you to our house. We have lots of snacks for you to eat, and a nice warm bed to sleep in. Your bed has a fluffy blanket on it, and you have a bookshelf with lots of books on it if you like to read. Me and Cathy both like to watch movies, too. Do you feel better, or do you want me to keep talking?” Joan stops rocking and looks at me. I can see the fear and sadness blending together in her dark blue eyes. She can’t be older than ten. 

Joan launches herself at me. She wraps her scrawny arms around my neck and holds on for dear life. The second I start rubbing her back, though, she’s off like a shot, in the corner again.

“Joan, honey, listen to me. I need you to focus, okay? I want you to focus on my breathing. I’m going to take one of your hands now...no? That’s okay, sweetie. Can you try to match my breathing? In slow, out slow. Ready?” Joan takes a few shuddering breaths along with Anne, her chest heaving. She bursts into tears.

“Joan, it’s okay. I want to help you, but I can’t unless you try. I won’t touch you if you don’t want me to, but you’ve gotta breathe for me.”

Joan chokes on her tears. “W-why? You’re j-just gonna h-h-hurt me like everyone e-else.”

“Joan, no, that’s not true. I don’t know what anyone told you, but you’re safe. Do you wanna go home now? I’m sure you’re tired.” Joan nods and holds out her arms to be carried. I’m not entirely sure I’ll be able to hold her, but she is very light. Cathy and I take her out to the car, and Cathy gets into the backseat with Joan, sleep almost instantly taking over both of their bodies. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here’s your not-so-wholesome trigger warnings for this chapter!  
> -mentioned abuse  
> -referenced/implied suicide  
> -panic attack  
> -TRAUMA TRAUMA TRAUMA

I shake Joan’s shoulders for the third time today. I really hate to wake her, but she’s slept nearly all day and Cathy and I need to take her clothes shopping soon, as she doesn’t have a bag with clothes or anything. Thankfully, she wakes up this time. As soon as she sees me, though, she jumps back in fear. 

“Hey, shh, you’re okay. Remember me? I’m Anne. I brought you home with me last night,” I remind her, and she seems to recognize me, like something clicks in her head. “Do you want anything?” She shakes her head. “A shower, something to eat, some water…”

“Food,” she says, somewhere between a whisper and a normal speaking tone. “Please?” she adds quickly.

“Alright, do you wanna come with me? That way you can have whatever you want.” Joan nods vigorously. 

“It’s past lunch, but Cathy and I eat dinner pretty late, so you can have whatever. Are you feeling like lunch or just a snack for now?” I ask as we walk down the stairs. Joan runs her fingers along the wall on one side of the staircase in reply, and I chuckle. “Joan, honey, did you hear me?” She shakes her head no. “Do you want lunch or just a snack?” She shrugs her shoulders.

When we enter the kitchen, Cathy spots Joan before the girl can see her. “Hey, kiddo!” Joan nearly jumps out of her skin. “Oh, I’m sorry. Didn’t mean to scare you there. How’d you sleep?” Joan shrugs again. Cathy cocks her head to one side. “Nightmares?” Joan shakes her head.

“Probably just the new environment,” I suggest. “Anyway, we came down so Joan could get something to eat. Joan, can Cathy show you what we’ve got?” She nods, and Cathy extends a hand to her. Joan takes it, and the two begin to explore the kitchen together. I sit at the table to attempt to write out a shopping list, even though that’s usually Cathy’s job.

Soon, Joan runs over to me with a big smile on her face and starts pulling on my arm. “Hey, hey, Joan, you gotta use words. What’s up?”

She glances over her shoulder at Cathy, who nods. “Miss Cathy is making…” She looks at Cathy again.

“Grilled cheese,” Cathy prompts her. 

“...that. D’you want one?”

“Do I want one? Of course I do! Are you gonna have one?” I ask. Joan nods proudly. “Good kid. Now, while Cathy makes our lunch, why don’t you sit down and help me with this shopping list?” Joan tumbles into the seat beside me and we work for a while. 

“Hey, uh, Joan?” I ask during a lull in our discussions of food. “Is it okay if I ask you a few questions.” Joan shrugs, then nods after a minute or two of thinking. “Great. If a question makes you uncomfortable, just tell me and we can stop for today, alright?” Another nod. “Okay. Let’s start with an easy one: how old are you?”

Joan hesitates. “Fourteen,” she says, and I try not to let my shock show through.

“Alright, how about this one: when’s your birthday?”

“Well… Papa never really let me celebrate my birthday… but I think it’s sometime in October.”

“Okay. Now, these next questions might get a bit personal, just tell me if you want to skip a question.” Joan nods again. “What’re your parents like?” I ask. 

“Dead,” Joan says, without missing a beat. 

I shift a little. “Ok...what were they like when they were alive, then?”

“Mama died when I was a baby, I never really knew her...Papa was mean.”

“How was he mean? If you wanna tell me, that is.”

“He hit me a lot...sometimes he sent me to bed without dinner...he yelled, ‘specially when he was in one of his moods...he blamed me for what happened to Mama...one time he poured really hot water on me…”

“Joan, baby, that’s not good!” Cathy chimes in, and it registers in the back of my head that she has set a sandwich in front of me. 

“I have scars, if you wanna see…”

“Maybe later, honey. How did your dad die?” I ask, probably overstepping several boundaries.

“Well...I came home from school one day, and he wasn’t sitting in the living room like usual… I didn’t really think about it till a little before I went to bed...I went to go look for him… I don’t know what made me look in the closet… but he was...he had a belt around his neck…”

“Oh, Joan, I’m so sorry…” Cathy begins.

“Sorry you had to live with such-” Cathy shoots me a look- “a buttface!” I finish at a yell.

“Please stop, Miss Anne, I don’t like yelling…” Joan pleads, but I don’t hear her.

“He deserves to rot-” Joan covers her ears- “for daring to even touch-” she looks as though she would like to claw her ears off- “such a sweet little girl!” 

By this point, Cathy has noticed Joan’s distress. “Anne!” she says. “You’ve sent her into another panic attack!”

Sure enough, Joan is cowering on the floor of the kitchen, struggling to breathe, rocking back and forth. I kneel down in front of her. “Joan, sweetie, honey, hey,” I say, “let’s breathe, okay? Just like last night?” Despite my efforts, Joan shoves at me, desperate to get away. “Baby, it’s me, Anne! Remember me?”

“No...go away…” Joan mutters through her panic. Cathy gives me a glare, and I back away. To my surprise, Cathy takes my place on the floor.

“Hey, Joan, let’s try something, okay?” Joan looks up from where her face is buried in her arms. “Can you grab my hand?” Cathy extends her left hand, and Joan grips it tightly. “Good girl! Now, I want you to center yourself on that touch. Take a big breath in-” they inhale together- “and out. Keep going, you’re doing great!” Cathy continues to ease the quivering girl through the attack, while I sit at the table and munch on my now-cold sandwich.

At some point, I’m pulled out of a trance by Cathy. “Anne? Anne, honey, Joan’s up in her room.”

“Hmm? Oh, did you finally get her calmed down?” I don’t know how long I’ve been zoned out, but it’s been at least 20 minutes.

“Yes, but she’s still pretty shaken up. I think you owe her an apology. Go take care of yourself first, though. You need to take your mind off of things.”

I sigh and stand up from the table, knocking my knee against the bottom of the heavy wood in the process. It takes all my willpower not to cry out, for fear of sending Joan into more panic. Cathy helps me into the next room and onto the couch, all the while calling me a big baby, and hands me the TV remote. 

“Call if you need me. I’ll be in the kitchen, but I’m going to go check on Joan now,” Cathy says, leaning down to give me a kiss on the forehead. “I get that you didn’t mean to get her all worked up, but we’ve gotta keep in mind that she’s gonna be pretty sensitive for a while.”

“I know, I know. Now, get out of my way so I can watch Food Network.” Cathy rolls her eyes but leaves anyway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did I keep dissociating while writing this and therefore take approximately a week to finish it? Why yes, yes I did. Also, go check out my original work if you don’t mind!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some trigger warnings because I love all of you!  
> -Mentioned attempted suicide  
> -Past self harm  
> -Kit curses (crazy thought I know)

I poke my head into Joan’s room. “Hey, kiddo. About earlier…” Joan looks up from having her head buried in a pillow. “Oh, sorry, did I wake you?” She shakes her head. “Okay. Anyway, I’m sorry about what happened earlier. I just...I didn’t think. You explicitly told us what you went through, and I brought some of that back to you. I can’t promise that it won’t happen again, because I have trouble controlling myself sometimes. But I will tell you that I’m trying my hardest to adjust so you’re more comfortable in our home. I’m gonna try not to yell around you, and I want you to tell either me or Cathy if something makes you uncomfortable or if you’re starting to panic, okay?” Joan looks at me like a deer caught in the headlights of a car. “Joan. I know it’s hard. Believe me, I’ve been in your situation before.”

“You have?”

I sit on the bed next to Joan. “Yep. When I was six, my sister, Kit- she was my cousin then- and I got left at a train station. My Mama, her name’s Lina, found us and took us home with her. My mom, Jane, went and bought clothes for us at around midnight.”

“Wow, really?” I nod. “Miss Anne, I wanna be like you when I grow up.”

“I’m sure you will. I’ll be proud of you no matter what, though.” Joan wraps her arms tight around my waist. Remembering what happened last time she gave me a hug, I ask, “Can I hug you back?” I feel her nod against my arm, and I pull her into my lap, laying her head on my shoulder.

“Y’know, Anne, I think Lina and Jane might want to meet Joan sometime,” Cathy says a couple days later. As if on cue, I hear the door swing open.

“Knock, knock!” Mom calls, walking right into the house without actually knocking. 

“Anne,  _ querida _ , we’ve missed you!” Mama says, not too far behind.

“Lina, Jane, how’re you guys doing?” Cathy asks, eager to please my moms even though she earned their approval almost ten years ago.

“Oh, same as always. How about you?” Mom asks. 

“We’ve actually got someone we want you to meet. She’s in the living room,” I step in. Mama and Mom share a look and follow Cathy and me into the living room. Joan is right where I left her on the couch. 

“Joan, this is Lina and Jane, Anne’s parents,” Cathy says, and Mom and Mama wave at Joan. “Lina, Jane, this is Joan…”

“Our foster daughter,” I finish for her.

“Oh,  _ mija _ , Cathy, this is amazing! But, why didn’t you call us the minute you got her home?”

“It was late. She needed to get to sleep, she had just had a panic attack, and she needed some time to get used to our home,” I explain. 

“Ah, it’s okay. Stuff like that happens sometimes,” Mom reassures me. 

“Anyway,” Cathy says, “how about we get something for lunch?”

“Yeah, sounds great,” Mama pipes up from the couch, where she’s already got Joan cuddled up to her. “Why don’t you invite Kitty over as well? I’m sure she’d love to meet Joan. She needs to get out some, anyway.”

Cathy cocks her head to one side. “Why hasn’t she been going out? Is she okay?”

Mama holds up a hand. “We’ll not discuss that right here and now.” She gestures to Joan.

“I’ll call her. You guys figure out what you want to order.” I step into the dining room to talk to Kit. She picks up right away.

“Annie, what’s up?” Kit says loudly, causing me to pull my phone away from my ear. 

“Hey, Kit. Mom and Mama are over right now, we’re gonna order in something for lunch if you wanna join us.”

“I’ll be right over. Order whatever, I’ll find something I like.”

“M’kay. See you then!” I hang up the phone and go back into the living room. “Hey guys, Kit said she’d be over soon. Did you figure out what you want to eat?” I ask. 

“Yeah, what kind of pizza do you like, Miss Anne?” Joan grins up at me.

“Well, I’m really not too picky. I do like a good pepperoni and mushroom, though.” Cathy makes a disgusted face. 

Mom shrugs. “What can I say? I raised her well!” Cathy stands and goes into the kitchen to call the pizza place. 

After a few minutes, we hear a small knock on the living room doorframe. I jump up out of my seat when I see who it is. 

“Kit!” I say, not quite yelling. “How are you?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know? You haven’t been interested in how I’m doing since you moved out.”

“Kitty, don’t snip at your sister like that. Why don’t you come over here and meet Joan?” Mom comes to my rescue. Kit waves at Joan, then sits in a chair on the opposite side of the room, as far away from everyone as possible.

Cathy comes in and perches on the arm of the couch. “The pizzas are gonna be here in about fifteen minutes. Does anyone want something to drink?”

After we eat, I manage to corner Kit and lead her to my room. “Kit. What’s going on?” I ask.

“If you cared, you would have seen,” she says. “But you distanced yourself from your family.”

“Kit, you're the one who cut everyone off from yourself. You never once texted or called me asking for help. I still have the right to know if you’re okay. I’m your sister.” 

“What’re you gonna do if I don’t say?”

“I’m gonna ask Mama.”

Kit glares at me. “Fine, I’ll tell you,” she grumbles. ”I’ve gone through four boyfriends in the past year.”

“I guess I’m not seeing why that’s so bad…”

“The first three breakups weren’t so bad. But then there was Thomas... I thought we had something real. I was sure he was gonna ask me to marry him. And he broke up with me. Just said ‘I’m done’ and left.”

I put a hand on her leg. “Kit, how long ago was this?” I ask. “I would have been happy to help you through it if I knew.”

“Nine months. I got really depressed over it. I started by blowing off my friends. Then I stopped caring about school. When it got really bad, close to the end, I stopped eating. And then I just...snapped. I took a bunch of pills.”

“Oh, Kit…” I begin.

“Don’t ‘oh, Kit’ me,” she interrupts. “I tried to kill myself! I could have fucking died! Maybe I wanted to die.” I’ve never heard her curse before.

“Kit, listen…” I try to reason with her. 

“No! I don’t want shit from you.” 

“Kit-”

“JUST SHUT THE HELL UP!” That hurts worse than anything else she’s said today. My little sister has been shutting herself away from everyone, and I’ve been ignoring the signs for far too long. All the missed calls, the unanswered texts… everything is finally adding up.

I collect myself and continue. “Kit. Take a breath and listen to me. I know what you’re going through. Before I knew I was gay, I dated a few guys. I had a particularly bad breakup, and it felt like the end of the world. What I did then... it’s easier if I just show you.” I pull up the leg of my shorts to show her the spiderweb of scars I have from almost a year of cutting myself.

“That’s bad, but that didn’t get you put in a medically-induced coma for three days. Two weeks in a hospital. And all the while, the big sister who I looked up to didn’t show her face.”

“Kit, I’m sorry about that. No one told me!”

“Well, you still could have…” It dawns on her why I wasn’t with her every single day she was in the hospital. “Oh.” Her face softens. ”I guess I haven’t been the best about keeping you up to date. I’m sorry.”

“Kit, don’t apologize. You were suffering. We all go through stuff like this.” 

“Really?”

“Yeah. Do you have a therapist?”

“I did…”

“Kit!”

“I’m sorry! Therapy was one of the first things I got rid of when I started cutting myself off from everyone.”

“Kit, you never should have done that. You need to go back as soon as you can, or I swear I will make you an appointment and drag you to it.”

“Okay, I will… but will you come with me? Just for the first few appointments. I need a reason to stay there until I get comfortable going again.”

“Of course, KitKat. I’d do anything for you.”

Kit throws her arms around me. “Thank you,” she breathes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> BOY DO I JUST LOVE WRITING ANGST.


	4. Chapter 4

“Cathy,” I say one morning, a little over a week after we brought Joan home, “we need to get away for a while.”

“What did you have in mind?” Cathy asks while making coffee.

“Let’s go to the beach for the weekend. We can drive there and get an Airbnb or something. Joan will love it, I’m sure. And, if it’s okay with you, I think my moms and Kit might like to come as well.”

“That sounds great. And your family can come with us, I don’t mind.”

“You’re the best. Should I tell Joan, then?”

“I think she’s still asleep, you can go check if you want.”

I head up the stairs and, to my surprise, Joan is sitting in the office at the top of the stairs. “Hey, Joan,” I say softly, not wanting to startle her. She looks up from the notepad in her lap. “What’re you doing in there?”

“Drawing,” she replies coolly.

“Cool. Can I see?”

“Ye- no! It’s a surprise.” Joan smirks. 

“Okay. Anyway, I came up here to ask if you’d like to go on a little vacation.”

“Yeah! I never went on trips with… him.” Joan makes a face. “Where are we going?”

“I was thinking to the beach.”

“Sounds like fun.”

“Yeah, it will be! I’ll take you to get some new clothes later today if you’re feeling up for it. Cathy’s got a meeting this afternoon that I’ll probably have to drive her to, so we can just go then!”

“Ok,” she shrugs.

“Alright, I’m just gonna leave you to your drawing-”

“No!” Joan shouts. “I mean, you can stay… if you want. If you’ve got something that needs done, you can go. I understand.”

“Joan, do you want me to stay up here?” I ask. She starts to shake her head no, but that quickly turns into a nod. I rush to her side when I notice that a few tears slipping down her cheeks have turned into uncontrollable sobbing. “Hey, hey, what’s wrong?” I ask

“I-I don’t-t know,” she sputters.

“Honey, you’re shaking. Let’s go sit in my room for a little while. That way it’s quiet and you can hopefully calm down faster.” Joan nods, and I help her to her feet. We make our way slowly to the master bedroom, where I set Joan on the bed and wrap her in a fuzzy throw blanket. I put an arm around her shoulders, and she almost immediately turns and buries her face in my shirt.

“It’s okay, Joan. Let it all out. I’m here if you need me,” I reassure her. I watch as the door opens a tiny crack, then all the way. Cathy shuffles in, holding two cups of coffee.

“Hey, Joan!” Cathy says. “How’d you sleep?” Joan shrugs.

I hold out my hands to Cathy. “Give me the caffeine,” I command. 

“What’s the magic word?”

I sigh, rolling my eyes. “Please?”

She hands me one of the mugs. “That wasn’t so hard, now was it?”

“Yes,” I say into the mug, “yes it was.”

Cathy waves a dismissive hand in my direction. “Anyway, Joan, did Anne tell you about the trip we’re planning to take?”

“Yeah, it sounds like fun,” Joan says.

“You sound sad. What’s wrong?”

“I’m not sad at all,” Joan explains, swiping at a stray tear carving a trail down her cheek. “I’m really, really happy. I’ve never felt so loved before. No one ever asked me how I slept or what I’m doing or anything like that before I came to live with you guys. I don’t think I’d ever even heard anyone tell me they loved me until a few days ago.” Cathy and I are both silent for a few minutes, a rare occurrence, while we process what we’ve just heard.

“Hey, Joan?” Cathy finally breaks the silence. “Why don’t you go downstairs and start up a movie? I’ve got something to talk over with Anne real quick, and then we’ll be down.”

“Okay, what movie do you wanna watch?” Joan asks. 

“Anything you want,” I say, giving her a quick squeeze around the shoulders. She gets up and runs out of the room, coming back for the blanket that she had been wrapped up in.

I turn to Cathy. “You said you wanted to tell me something?”

“So.”

“So?”

“So,” Cathy says, “I know we haven’t known Joan for very long-”

“I have a feeling I know where this is going…” I singsong.

“Would you stop interrupting me?” Cathy hisses playfully. I roll my eyes at her. “Anyway, she’s just taken to us so quickly… and it just feels like she’s  _ our girl _ already.”

“I know. Joan is special. There’s just something about her…”

“Something good or something bad?”

“Something very good. What she’s experienced will most likely haunt her forever, but she’s really adjusted well from her… not-so-good background.”

“Yeah,” Cathy agrees. “But anyway, I’ve been meaning to tell you something.”

“What’s up?”

“I think it might be in our best interests to look into adopting Joan.”

I sigh. “You’re right, you really are. I love her so much. She needs just about all the love we can give her at the moment.”

“Which is already a lot. And then you factor in Jane and Lina…” Cathy trails off as she gets lost in her own thoughts. “Anyway, the adoption should be a fairly quick process. That is, unless they find relatives that could take care of her.”

“Let’s not think about that, okay? Negativity doesn’t have a place in my coffee.”

“And you say I have a caffeine problem!” Cathy scoffs.

“That’s because you do, babe. I don’t make the rules.” I get up and head for the door. “Now, I am going to go watch whatever it is Joan turned on.” I go down the stairs and into the living room. As soon as I walk into the room, I recognize the movie.

“ _ The Aristocats _ , huh?” I say, causing Joan to jump. “Sorry, didn’t mean to spook you.”

“I can change it if you don’t want to watch this.” Joan seems worried, like she thinks I’m upset.

“Why wouldn’t I? It’s one of my favorites.”

“It is?” Joan’s eyes widen, and I nod. “I’ve never seen it before.”

“Well, you picked a good one.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m not dead, I’ve just got too many WIPs right now...


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ft. serious mom energy from Lina

“Come on, Joan!” Cathy shouts up the stairs. “We’re going to Lina and Jane’s house, we’ve gotta get on the road soon!”

A small clatter can be heard, then Joan comes into view, rushing downstairs. “I’m coming, I’m coming!”

“What did you knock over?” I ask.

Joan hesitates. “Nothing… come on, let’s go!”

“Seriously, Joan, what fell? We’re not gonna be mad, we’re just wondering.”

“I don’t know. Probably just my pencil holder.”

“Okay. And you heard the kid, Cathy! Out!” I herd the two out the door and into the car. I, as always, am tasked with driving, and Cathy takes the shotgun seat, leaving Joan in the back by herself. She says she’ll be fine, but I’m fully prepared to pull over and make Cathy move to the back if the need arises. It’s only a twenty minute drive, but you can never be too prepared.

Somewhat surprisingly, the trip passes without any incidents. We pull up to my moms’ house, where Kit’s car is already waiting in the driveway. Immediately after walking inside, I go to find Kit. She is exactly where I expected her to be: the room we used to share. 

“Hey,” I say, and Kit gives a little wave. “I’m really sorry I couldn’t come with you to your appointment like I said I would.”

“It’s fine. Mom went with me.” She shrugs. “It was still kinda scary, though. Promise you’ll come next time?”

“I wouldn’t miss it for the world. Now, you’re finally 21! Maybe I’ll buy you a couple drinks on the beach to make up for it.”

“That-” Kit hesitates a bit, which worries me- “sounds like fun!”

“Great! I’d better go find Mom and Mama now.”

“What? You didn’t say hi to them first?” I shake my head no. “Girl, you’d better get down there fast. But thanks for stopping in!”

“No problem.” I rush down the stairs faster than I thought possible, nearly running into Mama at the bottom. “Hey, Mama!” I say.

“Hi,  _ mija _ . Can I have a quick word with you?” she asks.

“Sure! What’s up?”

“Is Joan eating enough? She’s still as skinny as a rail.”

“Mama! She hasn’t even been with us for two weeks.” I take a quick glance around before adding, “But, for the record, she loves cookie dough ice cream.”

“ _ Ay _ , it’s just as I thought. This girl needs some good food.”

“And what exactly do you mean by that?”

“Churros. Paella. Jane’s french toast. Do I need to keep going?”

“No, I think I get the idea. We did take her out for Mexican food a couple-”

“Tut-tut-tut! Mexican and Spanish cuisines are very different!”

“Yeah, yeah, I know. Anyway,” I say, effectively changing the subject, “Cathy and I have some news for everyone. We haven’t even told Joan yet.”

“Is that so?” I nod. “Well, what are you waiting for? Tell everyone!”

“It’s not quite that simple. We want it to be special when we tell Joan. I will gladly tell you, Mom, and Kit, and Cathy says I can, but we’re gonna tell Joan this weekend.”

“Oh. I see. But you said you’d tell me?”

“Yes. Cathy and I have started looking at the adoption paperwork for Joan. It’s pretty exciting.”

Mama stares at me, not sure she’s hearing me correctly. “I’m… I’m going to be…”

I take both of her hands in mine. “Abuela Lina. Pretty amazing, right?”

Mama nods. “ _ Si. Amo a esa niña _ ,” she says, unable to even think in English right now. I’m not fluent, but Mama has taught me enough that I can guess what she means. 

“We love her too, Mama. Now, I’m gonna go tell Mom. You go sit down, you look exhausted.” I walk into the kitchen, the ever-present aroma of cinnamon and sugar growing stronger as I get closer. Cathy and Joan are nowhere in sight, which is a good thing. I like to be in a fairly private spot when I break big news to one or both of my moms. 

“Anne! It’s great to see you again!” Mom says, hopping up from where she was sitting at the table, nose buried in another romance novel. “How’s it going with Joan?”

“Great, actually. There’s just been quite a big development over at our house.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. We’ve decided to adopt Joan. I already told Mama.”

“Anne, honey, this is a really big undertaking-”

“I know, Mom. I don’t honestly care if you think this is a bad idea.”

“No, I was going to say that your Mama and I will support you every step of the way. Let us know if you need anything at all, okay?”

I smile. “I will.”

“Speaking of your Mama, you said you already told her? How’d she take it?”

“She slipped into Spanish, if that’s any indicator,” I say with a laugh.

“Oh, goodness. I’m going to go make sure she hasn’t turned into a puddle of tears in the hall. Stop in and say hi to Kitty, she’s been waiting for you all day.” Mom goes into the living room, and I sprint out of the kitchen and back upstairs. Kit is right where I left her, sitting on the bottom bunk in our old room.

“Hello, hello,” she says. “Fancy meeting you here.” I laugh. “Jokes aside, though, what’s up? I thought you were gonna go hang out downstairs.”

“I broke Mama.”

Kit giggles. “Oh, that’s nice. What’d you tell her?”

“Only that Cathy and I are going to adopt Joan.”

“That’s a good-” Kit stops as her expression turns serious. “Wait, really? Are you serious?”

“Yep. And so far, the agency we’re going through hasn’t found any family willing or able to take her. We’re keeping our fingers crossed that it stays that way.”

“Yeah, we can hope. You think we should go see if everyone’s ready to leave?”

“Probably. The sooner we get to that beach, the sooner we can get our drinks and relax.”

“You said it, sister!” The two of us make our way downstairs with only three things on our minds: sun, sand, and drinks in our hands.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There are two dogs barking directly outside my window right now. I seriously doubt there’s going to be any sleeping here tonight.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I swear I’m not dead! I’ve started school again and am currently spending most of my time doing homework and trying not to choke on saliva while retaining some semblance of sanity.  
> Kit is kinda-sorta-maybe a little drunk at the beginning of this chapter, so if you’re not comfortable with that make sure you prepare yourself!

I hear giggling as the door of the rental house clicks closed. I turn in my seat to see a half-drunk Kit stumble through the foyer. I suddenly feel my headache getting worse…

“Oh, Annieeee!” Kit chirps.

“Where were you? We’ve all been worried sick!”

“Aww, don’t worry about me! I met a cute boy last night…” Her voice trails off as she sighs. 

“You were also very drunk last night,” I hiss.

“I wasn’t that bad!”

“Do you remember your mystery boy’s name?”

“Damon. Or maybe it was Damien? He had pretty eyes.”

Mama appears in the living room, having just come down the stairs. “Kitty, have you had anything to drink today?”

“Yeeeeeah, I had some orange juice-” she slurs, and Mama sighs with relief- “but I think it had something in it. It tasted shiny!”

“ _ Mija _ , I think you need to drink some water and take a nap. You’ll feel better if you do.”

“Ooh, Mama, did Annie tell you about my boyfriend?” Kit asks, holding out some of the vowels a touch too long. Mama shoots me a worried glance.

“She doesn’t even remember his name,” I tattle.

“Poor  _ niña _ was having a little too much fun, I think. Come on, Kitty, let’s get you to bed.” Mama takes Kit by the arm and leads her to the downstairs bedroom. When Mama comes back, it’s my turn to be fawned over. “Anne, don’t you think you should get some sleep as well?”

“No, no, I’m fine. I got a whole two hours last night.” I wave her off, and she comes back with a glass of water.

“Drink this,” she says, “you’ll feel better. And I don’t think a shower would hurt you. You still smell like coconut rum.”

“Cathy likes it,” I argue.

Mama crosses her arms. “I don’t think she likes it when you smell like alcohol.”

“She likes the coconut smell, though!”

“Okay. You’re a grown woman, I’ll let you decide if you want to go around smelling like the bar.” 

I sit in silence for a while as Mama looks around the kitchen, probably searching for food that won’t make anyone nauseous. At some point, Mom comes into the living room, rubbing her forehead. I would guess that she has a headache as well. Mama catches sight of her and rushes over.

“ _Buenos días,_ _mi amor_ ,” she murmurs before giving Mom a kiss on the forehead. Mom grumbles something in reply and comes to sit on the couch.

“Hey, Mom.” I wave, and she returns the gesture. “Have you checked in on Cathy yet?”

“Yeah,” Mom says into her hands, “yeah, she’s still out cold. Go take a shower, you smell like your drinks from last night.”

“That’s what I told her!” Mama exclaims in mock annoyance.

“Fine, I’m going, I’m going!” I get up slowly and make my way out of the room and up the stairs. I peek into the downstairs bedroom first, though, where Kit is sound asleep and Joan is sitting quietly on her bed, drawing. Once upstairs, I look in another bedroom to check on Cathy, who is, as Mom said, out like a light. I grab a towel from the closet in the hall and head into the bathroom.

After my shower, I return to the bedroom Cathy and I are sharing and throw on a tank top and some shorts. I sit down on the bed next to Cathy’s sleeping form and lightly trace patterns over her arms and back. I eventually feel her stirring awake. I lean over and press a soft kiss to her temple. “Good morning,  _ mon chéri _ ,” I whisper, unsure of how hungover she is.

Cathy groans but doesn’t complain about the small amount of light shining through the window or the fact that I woke her up. “Come on, babe, you’ve gotta get up,” I say, a little louder, brushing hair out of her face. “Remember what we’re doing tonight?” Cathy’s eyes fly open as she shoots into a sitting position. Instantly regretting this move, she grimaces and rubs the back of her head. 

“Head rush,” she mutters.

“Water will help with that. Let’s go downstairs and get some, okay? Everyone’s probably waiting on us, anyway.” Cathy nods. I get down from the bed and walk around it to her side. I offer her my hand to help her up. We make our way down to the living room, where Mama greets us with a plate of waffles. We sit at the table and eat, none of us exchanging a single word until we finish. 

Cathy wipes a drop of syrup from the side of her mouth and stands. “I think I’m going to go check on Joan,” she says. She emerges from the downstairs bedroom about ten minutes later with both Kit and Joan in tow. Kit is fairly giggly, still recovering from her “shiny” orange juice. Joan is clutching her sketchbook tightly. She makes her way over to me, peeking at the notebook every so often to make sure she isn’t smudging the drawing or tearing the paper.

“Hey, Joan, how’d you sleep?” I ask.

“Okay, I guess. I made something for you!”

“You did? Can I see it?” Joan nods and turns her sketchbook around, revealing a portrait of myself and Cathy holding hands. I wrap the girl in a hug, being careful not to rip the drawing. “Joan, this is beautiful! Can I hang it on the fridge when we get home?”

She shrugs. “You can if you want.”

“Come on, everyone, let’s go! We’re gonna miss our reservation if we don’t hurry!” I call up the stairs. Mama and Mom are the first down, and Cathy isn’t too far behind until she realizes that she left her purse on the bed. It isn’t long before Joan and Kit join us in the living room. Once Cathy finally comes downstairs, we all pile into the minivan.

We arrive at the steakhouse after a short drive, and I encourage Joan to order what she wants once we are seated. She ends up settling on barbecue chicken breast, and I choose a ribeye steak. When our food is brought to the table, I decide that it’s time.

“Alright, guys, Cathy and I have some very exciting news!” I chirp, hoping that everyone will play along, even though I’ve already told them.

Thankfully, Kit picks up on what I’m thinking. “What is it? Please tell us, Annie!” Mom and Mama halfheartedly act with Kit. 

“I don’t know, Anne, are you sure you want to tell them?” I receive a playful jab in the side from Cathy’s elbow.

“I think we’d better, they seem pretty invested in this already.”

“Alright then, tell them!”

I take a deep breath and feel Cathy’s hand squeeze mine under the table. I look up to see her give me a small smile and a nod. “Well, we’ve decided to adopt Joan,” I finally say. Joan takes a sharp breath in and starts coughing around the bite of potatoes she just put in her mouth. She starts to panic a bit but quickly calms down when I start lightly rubbing her back.

“You- you really wanna adopt me?” she asks after taking a sip of water.

“Yes, Joan. We love you. Cathy and I are gonna be your moms, and you’ll have your aunt Kit,  _ abuela _ Lina, and grandmama Jane. How does that sound?”

Joan sits in shock for a minute or two before practically jumping into my arms. “I love you,” she says. “I love you so much.” She turns back to the table. “I love you all.”

“We love you too, _querida,”_ Mama says for all of us. “Now eat! Your food is getting cold!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, look, Anne knows three languages! Go her! If only I could speak English without sounding like a fool... nope how about learning Spanish at 7:40 in the morning? While wearing a mask? Hooray for school...*sarcasm*


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow long chapter.   
> WARNINGS WARNINGS WARNINGS:  
> -hospitals  
> -traumatic injury  
> -a teensy weensy bit of blood (but it’s there)  
> **DISCLAIMER**  
> I know literally nothing about the subject matter of this chapter, everything was googled. Please don’t attack me if something is incorrect.

I hear a dull thud, like the sound of a sack of potatoes hitting the ground, and jolt awake. I decide to investigate the source of the sound before waking Cathy. I turn on my phone flashlight and sweep it up and down the hallway. The first place I look is Joan’s room, and I’m glad I do. Joan is sprawled out on the wood floor next to the ladder for the top bunk, unconscious. I kneel next to her and try to wake her up, but to no avail. I yell for Cathy, and she comes sprinting into the room. She takes one look at Joan and begins to panic.

“What do I do? Who do I call? I’m not driving to the hospital!” she yells, completely freaking out.

“Cathy, calm down,” I say softly. “Call 911. I’m just as scared as you are, but we’ve gotta stay calm.”

“Right,” she replies after taking a deep breath. “911. I can do that.”

“Good. Call them, then go turn on the porch light. I need you to call Mama or Mom as well and tell them that we’re taking Joan to the hospital.” Cathy fumbles with her phone, her hands shaking. As a nurse, I’ve found that it’s almost easier to feel a pulse on a person’s neck as opposed to their wrist, so that’s what I do. It’s the first logical step in my brain- look for a pulse.  _ Especially  _ if the person is unconscious or unresponsive.

“Thank fucking christ,” I mutter under my breath. Cathy gives me a confused look. “She’s got a pulse,” I clarify. “My main concern now is her head. Can you turn on the light?” Cathy, now on the phone, nods and obeys.

I see only one thing when the light fills the room- something that worries me immensely. “Shit!” I yell, not caring at this point who hears me. “Shit, shit, fucking shit!”

“Anne! What’s wro- oh, no. That can’t be good.” A small, but steady stream of blood is flowing from Joan’s ear, creating a puddle on the floor. “What’s that mean?”

“God, I don’t know. I’m thinking it’s… no, I don’t want to tell you. You’ll freak the fuck out.”

“Please tell me? I promise I won’t freak out.”

I attempt to calm my voice before I break the possible bad news to Cathy. “I think it’s a skull fracture. I could be wrong, but I have every reason to believe it is.”

“No, no, it can’t be...”

I take her hands. “Cathy. Listen to me. I’m a trauma nurse. Skull fractures can heal on their own, but more serious ones can require surgery, so we need to get this figured out fast. I want you to tell the dispatcher what I think it is, and tell me any instructions they give you.”

“Okay.” Cathy walks over to a corner and leans against the wall, talking to the 911 dispatcher again. I don’t know what to do at this point, so I grab Joan’s hand and unlock my phone. I decide that I have the best chance of getting through to Mom at this hour, since she sleeps with her ringer turned on. 

Thankfully, she answers. “Annie? What are you-”

“No time to talk, Mom. Get Mama and head this way. We’re taking Joan to the hospital.”

“What happened?”

“I’m not sure, but I think her skull might be fractured. She’s out cold and her ear is bleeding, but she’s got a pulse.”

Mom has a few choice words about the situation. “Okay,” she finally says. “Do you want us to pick anything up on the way?”

”Mom, it’s almost three in the morning. You’re not going to find anything open.” I stop to think for just a bit. “Although, if you find anywhere to get coffee, I’m sure Cathy would appreciate some.”

“And anything for you?”

“No, I’ll be fine. As long as Joan’s okay, I’m okay.”

I can practically hear Mom shaking her head through the phone. “Alright, whatever you say.”

Cathy walks into the room. I hadn’t even noticed she left. “The paramedics are on their way in,” she says. She pauses to take in the scene. “Anne, are you feeling alright?”

“I’m just worried. I see stuff like this all the time, but now-” I wipe at my eyes, feeling the hot tears beginning to roll down my cheeks. “It’s different now. I always think ‘no, that won’t happen to me, it can’t happen to me,’ and all of a sudden, it’s happened.”

Cathy comes to kneel next to me on the floor. She wraps her arms around me. “I know, Annie, I know. It’s all gonna turn out fine, everything’s gonna be alright. Don’t worry.”

“All I can do is worry, though. Joan is my baby, and I let something happen to her.”

“No, you didn’t. Whatever happened- it’s not your fault. Now, can you let go of her hand so the paramedics can take her to the ambulance?”

I sniffle. “I guess so.”

“They said only one parent can ride with her,” Cathy continues.

My heart drops. “Okay. You go ahead, then. I’ll be there in a bit.”

“No.” Cathy grabs my shoulders and forces me to look at her. “You’re going to be the first person she sees when she wakes up. I’m gonna call Jane, see if she and Lina can pick me up on their way.” She gives me a quick kiss on the cheek before standing and pulling me to my feet. “Go. Be with our baby.”

I nod and take off after the paramedics. Joan doesn’t wake up in the ambulance like I expect her to, but I figure the longer she’s out, the easier it’ll be to draw blood and do scans. 

Shortly after Joan is given a room in the ER, she begins to stir, whimpering in pain. I pull a chair closer to the edge of the bed, attempting to calm her down without touching her head. 

The nurse, who I don’t recognize, had previously been attaching Joan to a couple of monitors but stopped to go out into the hallway. She comes back about five minutes later. “I’ve got someone bringing supplies for a morphine drip,” she explains. “Can you try to make sure she doesn’t whip her head around while I finish this up?” 

“I can try my best.” I keep stroking Joan’s arm, which calms her down a little bit. Not too long after the nurse, whose ID badge reads Sarah, finishes up, Jeremy comes into the room carrying IV supplies. Jeremy, who is my favorite CNA, graduated from high school not too long ago. He took a health careers class during his senior year, which gave him the training required to be a nurse’s aide.

“Anne!” he exclaims, not too loudly. “What’re you doing here? And who’s this?”

“Hey, Jeremy. This is Joan, my foster daughter. She fell and hit her head on something.”

“Oh no! We’ll get her fixed up with some of this stuff, then. Signs of fracture?”

“Yeah, she was bleeding from one of her ears earlier.”

“Alright, once I’m done with this, I’ll get a doctor in here. Dr. Ramirez is here tonight, if you want me to find her.”

“Please do.”

“I’ll try my best.” He turns to Joan, having prepped everything. “This is gonna sting a little bit, but hopefully it’ll make you feel better.”

“Joan, do you wanna hold my hand?” I ask.

She nods gingerly, every movement clearly hurting her. “Mama,” she cries.

“I know it hurts, baby, but you’ve gotta be strong, okay?” I take one of her hands as Jeremy grabs the other. She yelps as the needle pierces her skin, but is quieted soon as the medicine relieves her pain.

“First try!” Jeremy cheers.

“Nice job!” I congratulate him.

“Okay, I’m gonna go find Dr. Ramirez now. Don’t hesitate to press the call button if you need anything.” Jeremy heads into the hall, and Sarah left a while ago, which leaves Joan and me alone. 

“Joan, can you try to relax for me?” I say. “I know it hurts, but you need to calm down a little bit.”

“Miss Anne? Where’s my mama?” Joan asks.

“Joan, shhhhh. No more talking. Just relax.”

After a long silence, there is a knock at the doorway. I look up in time to see Dr. Ramirez walk into the room. “Melanie, thank god you’re here.” I breathe a sigh of relief.

She nods. “Always good to see you as well, Anne. Jeremy told me that this is Joan.”

“Yes. She hit her head on the floor and is exhibiting signs of a fracture.”

“We’ll take her down to radiology, then. X-ray and CT scan. We’ll go from there.”

“Sounds like a plan.” Dr. Ramirez takes the brakes off of Joan’s bed and wheels her down the hall, careful not to jar her head. I am told to wait in the hall just outside the double door to the radiology department.

When we are back in the room, Cathy texts me and says that they just parked at the hospital. I give her the number of the room we’re in, and sure enough, she, Mom, and Mama come rushing in.

“Any news?” Mom asks frantically.

“No, not yet. She had a couple scans done, though, so we’re waiting on those right now.”

“Oh. Hopefully they come back soon!”

Almost as if by magic, Dr. Ramirez comes into the room carrying a file folder. “Alright. You guys may want to sit down for this.” She waits for everyone to find a seat before continuing. “Anne, you were right. Joan has a depressed skull fracture. The bone isn’t pressing into her brain, but it is serious enough to require surgery. We don’t have any neurosurgeons on staff here, so we need to airlift her to Evanston Children’s.”

I must look immensely scared, because Mom suddenly pipes up. “It’s a good hospital, Anne. That’s where we took Kitty when she fell out of that tree.”

“Melanie, are you sure she’s good to fly in a helicopter?” I ask, only slightly reassured.

“I wouldn’t be putting her in the sky if I didn’t have full faith in her. I’m going to give her a small dose of a sedative, just enough to keep her from moving and hurting herself, and keep her on the morphine as well.”

“Annie, she knows what she’s doing. Trust her,” Cathy says.

“I’ll always trust her, both because she’s a doctor and because she’s my friend. I’m just worried.”

“Rightfully so. Skull fractures are serious business. And I get the whole new-parent thing. My girlfriend has a two-month-old. Cutest little girl you’ll ever meet, but between her and the hospital, I don’t get much sleep.”

Mama looks at me. “Anne, you have to let them take her to Evanston. She’ll heal faster.”

I sigh. “You’re right. Do what you need to,” I say to Dr. Ramirez.

The next three hours are a complete blur, and I only start recognizing what’s happening when Cathy and I are sitting in an office at the Evanston hospital. A woman about my age bustles into the room, muttering under her breath. 

“Sorry about the wait,” she says. “I’m Dr. Cleves, I’ll be performing the surgery-”

“Anna?” I interrupt.

“Anne? Oh, it’s been forever! And you and Cathy are still together, good to see that.”

“Never would have picked you as a pediatric neurologist.”

“Best decision of my life,” she admits. “I love working with the kids. What’re you doing these days?”

“I’m a trauma nurse down at St. Andrew’s. You should come visit sometime.”

Cathy clears her throat. “Anna? The surgery?”

“Right. So, what I’m gonna do is take out the damaged bone and replace it with a 3D-printed plate. Very sturdy material. The nurses are fitting your little girl for it right now. I’m also going to have to shave her head, sorry.”

“It’s fine.”

Anna glances at the door. “Well, it looks like we have a little bit of time. They’re sending someone to get me when they’re ready for me.”

“Okay. How’ve you been lately?” I ask.

“Quite excited, really. I recently found out that I’m going to be having a baby boy. I can’t wait to meet him.” She pats a baby bump that I hadn’t noticed before.

“Oh, congratulations!” Cathy exclaims. “When are you due?”

“This December. I’m planning on naming him Alex.”

“You’re gonna be a great mom, Anna,” I say.

“Thank you.” Something at the door catches her attention. “Alright, guys, I’ll see you after the surgery. I’m going to give your girl the best care I can. Don’t worry.”

Cathy and I are led to a brightly-decorated waiting room, and there we stay for the duration of the two and a half hour surgery. Afterwards, Anna comes to escort us to Joan’s room. “A perfectly successful surgery,” she claims, and I don’t doubt her for a second. 

“What meds do you have her on?” I ask.

“Just the morphine. I’m gonna have my nurses slowly wean her off of it and start her on some prescription-strength Tylenol.” I open my mouth to ask another question, but Anna is quicker. “I know what you’re wondering. I’m planning to have her discharged in a day or two.”

“Wow. So soon?”

“You’ll still want to keep a close eye on her for a while, but she should be feeling much better by then. I’ve got the incision stapled, those will come out in about a week. Bring her back here, I’ll take them out, and then I’ll decide if she needs anything else. I’ll schedule a follow-up about a month from then.”

“What kind of stuff should we do at home?” Cathy asks.

“Get some regular Tylenol if you don’t already have some, just on the off chance she starts hurting again. Wash where the staples are one or two times a day with cool water. Keep her away from any stressful activities.”

“That’s...simpler than I thought it would be,” I remark.

“Yep, it’s relatively easy. I’ve got some things to attend to now, but I guess I’ll see you around.” Anna exits the room, leaving Cathy and me alone with a still-sleeping Joan. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anna’s back! And poor baby Joan is hurt :(  
> Lemme know what you think of this.  
> Idk what next chap is gonna be, but the one after that we get to go hang out with Kit for a while.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! No trigger warnings for this chapter (big shocker, I know) except for the fact that Cathy’s mom is a bitch.

“Cathy!” I call, walking through the kitchen door. “Are you ready for today?”

Cathy looks over her shoulder at me. “If you mean ‘am I ready for my mother to criticize my life choices,’ you already know the answer.”

I go over to her and give her a squeeze around the shoulders. “Babe, I know your mom isn’t the nicest person, but don’t you think she deserves to meet Joan?”

Cathy sighs. “I guess you’re right. I just…don’t really like going home. Having eleven siblings, things get chaotic fast. I’m not sure Joan is ready for that.”

“Hold on. _Eleven_ siblings?”

“Yep. I was number six. There were originally supposed to only be five kids, but a mistake was made and my parents started having more kids.”

“Cath, you’re not a mistake.”

“Try me. Seven-year age gap?”

“Accident. Not a mistake. Kids are never mistakes.”

Cathy laughs sarcastically. “Tell that to my mom. She’s found some way to convince most of us we’re mistakes.”

“Really?”

“Yep. Will is because my mom got pregnant with him when she was sixteen, Thomas because she didn’t want more kids, the same for Maddy, Annie, and Evie, me because her second husband didn’t want kids, Kate and Jake because, again, she didn’t want more kids, Millie because she was pregnant with twins and miscarried one, Drew because her third husband thought they had enough kids, and Lexie because Mother though she was too old to have more kids.”

“I counted eleven.”

“Ah, yes, Ella. The only one of us that was never considered a mistake. She’s the next oldest after me. Mother’s favorite.”

“Do you know if any of your siblings are home? I think it’d be nice for Joan to meet at least some of her other aunts and uncles.”

“As far as I know, Millie, Drew, and Lexie still live at home. Other than that, I have no idea.”

“Okay. Well, I’m gonna go tell Joan to get ready, and we can be on the road in… 20 minutes?” Cathy nods, and I go to tell Joan the plan.

We pull up to a small, one-story house in what is seemingly the middle of nowhere. “You’re sure this is it?”

“Yep. This is where I remember living last, anyway.”

“Alright. Joan, let’s go.”

“I don’t want to.”

“Why not?” Cathy asks. “Nana Maud wants to meet you.”

“Cath,” I whisper, “be serious. Maud didn’t want to meet me. And that was at our wedding.”

Cathy elbows me. “Shut up,” she hisses, then turns back to Joan. “Come on. You need to meet your other grandparents. And either way, I’m sure you’ll get along with my younger siblings. They’re not much older than you.”

“They’ll just make fun of me! It’s not worth it, anyway. I heard you and Miss Anne talking.”

“Joan, we’ve talked about this. Just call us Anne and Cathy. We’re going to be your moms, you don’t have to say Miss.”

“But Maisie said-”

“Maisie isn’t in charge anymore. Anne and Cathy. Got it?”

Joan sighs. “Okay. But I heard you and Anne talking. I don’t want to meet Nana Maud.”

“All you have to do is say hi to her, then you can go hang out with Millie and Lexie and Drew. And I promise, they won’t make fun of you,” I reassure her.

“But what if they do?”

“Then I’ll come beat them up. They’re my little siblings, I’m allowed to.”

Joan smiles a little. “Okay.”

I get out of the car and open her door for her. I stop her before she gets too far. “Hey. I love you, you’re brave, you got this,” I whisper. “And we’re only staying for a couple hours.” Joan nods and runs to catch up with Cathy, who is already walking up the path to the door.

Cathy lets herself in, and we enter the dark living room. “Mother?” she calls. “Lexie? Drew? Millie?”

“Okay, there’s no one here. Can we go home now?” Joan asks nervously.

“Not yet. The car’s in the driveway, there’s bound to be someone here. Let’s look in the kitchen.”

Joan turns to me. “This place is giving me the creeps.”

“Me too. What do you say we wait outside for a while?” Joan nods, and I lead her back to the front porch.

“I wanna go home,” Joan says after we sit in silence for a while. 

“I know, honey. I do too.”

“Why couldn’t Nana Maud have just come to our house?”

“I don’t know. I guess Cathy wanted to surprise her.”

Just then, the front door opens again. “I found her,” Cathy says. “Come say hi. Drew and Lexie are here as well. Millie’s already off at college for summer classes.”

“Alright, Joan. Let’s try this again.” We walk through the front door and go past the living room to the kitchen. Cathy’s mom is sitting at the table, looking through a magazine. “Maud,” I say, my voice stiff.

“Oh, you.”

“Mother!” Cathy comes to my rescue.

“Catherine, I thought I made it clear that I do _not_ approve of your wife.” Cathy flinches at the use of her full name. “And who’s this?” she asks, gesturing to Joan. “Some charity case you picked up?”

“No,” Cathy states defiantly. “No. She’s going to be our daughter. The adoption is going to take effect on the fifth.”

“Ah. An unwanted child then. A shame I didn’t give any of you lot up for adoption. I’d probably be much happier.”

“Mother, you don’t mean it.”

“Oh, but I do! Especially with you, much too headstrong for your own good. Never did anything worthwhile with your life either. I’m surprised you didn’t end up like Maddy.”

“And what do you mean by that?”

“You know exactly what I mean! You know what happened to Maddy. She ran off with a boy and came back broke, single, and pregnant. Sometimes I wish you had ended up like her. But no, no, you were never interested in the boys, only the girls.”

“Mother, I love Anne!”

“You got married when you were too young to even know what love is!”

“You’re one to talk. Pregnant at sixteen, three ex-husbands… I could go on, you know.”

“Catherine Parr-”

“Don’t talk to her like that!” Joan yells out of nowhere, her voice cracking. “Cathy is a better mom than you could ever be. Anne is my mom too. And she loves Cathy. You can’t talk to either of them like you were just talking to Cathy.” Joan begins to walk away, but turns back to add one more thing. “And you’re wrong! I’m not unwanted. Cathy and Anne, they both want me. And my _abuela_ and my grandmama do, and my aunt Kit. They all want me.” She storms out of the room, and I hear the front door slam.

“Well. Another outspoken girl,” Maud states flatly.

“I’ll… I’ll go talk to her,” I say, frantic because Joan has never acted like that before. I hear Maud mutter something about unruly children as I run out of the room.

“Joan. What got into you?” I ask breathlessly, sitting down on the steps to the porch.

“I didn’t like the way she was talking to Cathy,” she replies simply.

“You are something else.”

The front door swings open. “No! And I’m not planning to bring my family back to this dump either!” Cathy screams, on the verge of tears. She slams the door. “Let’s go,” she says to Joan and me. 

I take her arm and begin to usher her down the path. “Babe, do you wanna talk about it?”

“No.” She finally lets the tears fall. “Just… just take me home. Please.”

“Okay. I got you, alright? You don’t need to worry anymore. We don’t have to ever come back if you don’t want to.”

“I just wanna go home.”

“Cathy, we’re nearly to the car,” Joan steps in. “Can you just make it a little further?” 

“I think so.”

“Good, you’re doing great. Just ten more steps, alright?” I let Joan take care of Cathy while I run ahead to open their car doors.

“Did she hit you?” Joan asks.

“No,” Cathy sighs.

“What did she do, then?”

“You heard her. She said mean things about me, and you, and Anne. Besides, I was really hoping you’d get to meet Drew and Lexie. And I wanted to see Millie one more time before she went off to college.”

“Cath, do you want me to turn on some music?” I inquire.

“No, no, I think I’m going to take a nap on the way home.”

“Okay. I’ll try to be quiet.”

I manage to stick to my word, and Cathy is still asleep when I pull into our driveway. “What do you think, Joan?” I whisper. “Should we leave the car on so she can sleep?”

“No,” she replies in a low voice. “Take her inside and lay her on the couch.”

“Alright, but I’ll need you to open doors for me.” Joan nods and opens the front passenger-side door after climbing out of the car. I pick Cathy up and carry her bridal-style to the front door, where I wait for Joan to open the door. After it is unlocked and opened, I walk into the living room and lay Cathy down on the couch.

“What do we do now, Anne?”

“Follow me,” I answer. We walk up the stairs and into my room, where I instruct Joan to sit down on the bed. I go over to my dresser and pick up two decks of cards. “I’ll teach you a game. It’s pretty easy, but you’ve gotta move quickly.”

“I think I can do that.” I deal the cards, and we play multiple rounds.

After a couple hours, Cathy comes into the room. “What’re we playing?” she asks.

“Stress,” I reply.

“Alright, deal me in.”

“You know how this goes. Grab another deck.” We play until late that night, when Joan declares that she is tired.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you liked this one! Go check out my original work, “Welcome to the Wheat Field” if you haven’t already, and follow me on Instagram @jo_from_camp or on Snapchat @joannam423


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> whoop whoop, big stuff happening! i’m physically unable to think for the moment, thanks for that you guys. anyway, to the chapter!  
> but first, i warn you.  
> -one (1) mention of miscarriage

Just as I’m about to settle in for a bit of quiet time, my phone rings. It’s Kit. She never calls me. “Kit, what’s going on?” I ask. All I hear on the other end is crying. “Kit? Kit, are you okay?” Still only crying. “Do you want me to come over?”

“Yes,” she answers in a small voice. 

“Alright. I’ll have to bring Joan, but she can entertain herself.” I hang up the phone after making sure she’ll be alright by herself. I get Joan and run down to the car to head to Kit’s place.

Kit is sitting on the couch when I get into her apartment, still crying a bit. “Alright, what did you need?” I ask. She stands and motions for me to follow her into the bathroom. There, on the counter, is something that will change Kit’s life forever. I stare at it in shock until Kit speaks up.

“Annie, I’m...” she sighs, unsure if she wants to continue. “I’m pregnant. And I’m more scared than I think I’ve ever been.”

“Alright, well, you have options-”

Kit shoots me a death glare. “No. I’m having this baby.”

“Okay. And this is your beach boo’s kid?”

“Yes. And his name is Damien.”

“Anyway. Do you want him to have any part in your baby’s life?”

“I think so. We’ve been doing the long-distance thing for a while now. He seems like he’d be a good dad.”

“Alright. Do you think you should call him?”

“I will later. I wanna call Mama and Mom first.”

“Do you want me to stay here while you call them?”

“Can you? I don’t want you to stay if you have things to do.”

“I’m free for the day. I’ll stay as long as you need me to.”

“Really?” I nod. “Thank you.” Kit grabs her phone from where she had set it on the counter and sits down on the bathroom floor. She presses the button for speakerphone and sets the phone on the floor.

“Hello?” I hear Mama’s voice say.

“Hey, Mama,” Kit sighs.

“What’s wrong, mija? You sound sad.”

“I’m not sad. I’m just really, really nervous. You see, I’ve got some important news...”

“News, you say? Jane isn’t here right now, otherwise I’d go get her. But you can tell me!”

“Alright. Promise you won’t be mad?”

“Kitty, you know I could never be mad at you. Just tell me what’s going on.”

“I just found out that I’m pregnant. And I’m keeping the baby.”

“Oh, Kitty, that’s wonderful! I’m assuming I can tell Jane as soon as she gets home?”

“You can if you’d like, but tell her to call me either way.”

“I’ll make sure to. Bye for now!”

We hear a click as Mama hangs up. “Well?” I ask.

“She took it way better than I thought she would. Do you think I should tell Joan?”

“She’s here if you want to. I can go get her-”

“Joan!” Kit yells, interrupting me. “Come here!”

“-or you could do that.”

Joan appears in the doorway. “What do you need?”

Kit pats a spot next to her on the floor. “Come sit down.” Once Joan is seated, she continues. “Close your eyes and hold out your hands.” She motions to me, and I hand her the test stick. “Alright, open them!”

Joan stares at the test for a while. “What..?”

“You’re going to be a big cousin! Isn’t that exciting?”

“Yeah... Wait a second.”

“What?”

“I’m going to be a big cousin...” Joan glances at the test still in her hand. “So that means you’re pregnant.” Kit nods, her eyes glistening with tears. “Uhh… congratulations, I guess,” Joan says shakily, standing up. “I-I’m gonna go…” She backs out of the bathroom before turning and running back into the main room.

Kit starts to freak out. “What… Did I do something wrong? Did I say something?”

“Kit, no, calm down. I don’t know what’s going on. Will you be okay by yourself while I go talk to her?” Kit nods. I walk out into the main room of Kit’s apartment, where Joan is in tears on the sofa.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” she sputters between sobs.

“Joan, what are you talking about?”

“You-you came to yell at me… for what I said…”

“No, baby, I’d never yell at you. Not on purpose, anyway.”

“Then wh-why did you c-come out here?”

“I just wanted to know why you reacted like that.”

“I-I don’t know! I j-just never learned how t-to react to things like this, I g-guess.”

“Hey, that’s okay! You don’t have to get all worked up about it, but if crying makes you feel better, I’ll stay with you till you’re done. Heck, I’ll even sing you a song to help you calm down.”

“R-really?” Joan hiccups.

“Yeah! If you don’t mind the song being in Spanish, that is.”

“N-no, n-not at all.”

“Okay.” I open my arms and beckon her closer. “Come here, come here.” She crawls into my lap and I begin to stroke her hair, rocking back and forth. I sing one of the Spanish lullabies that I remember Lina singing to me when I had a nightmare. 

“Hey, I remember that one,” Kit says, walking into the room.

“Yeah. I also remember you being way better at Spanish than I was,” I retort playfully.

“Don’t act like you weren’t a fast learner as well, Miss ‘I Play Four Instruments.’”

“Five, but your point stands. Either way, you speak four languages.”

“I say two and a half at best. English, I’m conversational for the most part in sign language, and I’m okay in Spanish. My pronunciation still sucks.”

“What about the French I taught you?”

“I forgot most of it.”

I feel Joan tap me on the shoulder. “What is it, baby?”

“You play five instruments?”

I brush a bit of hair away from her eyes. “Yep. Piano, guitar, and violin, plus flute and harp to some extent.”

“Wow.”

Kit sits on the couch next to me. “You know, Joan, she could probably teach you,” she says.

Joan’s eyes widen. “Really?”

“God, I haven’t touched a piano in forever, let alone a harp.”

Kit’s phone rings. It’s Mom, requesting a FaceTime call. “I swear, she never just calls me. Always FaceTime,” she mutters before pressing the green “accept” button. Mom’s face appears, her mouth set in a grim line.

“So. You’re pregnant,” she says a bit too harshly.

“Yeah,” Kit replies, meek as a lamb. Mom sighs, leaning back in whatever chair she’s in and running a hand through the top of her hair. I feel for Kit’s hand next to me and give it a little squeeze.

“I’m...disappointed.”

“What?!”

“I’m sorry, Kitty, it’s just… oh, I don’t think I ever told you this. When I was in high school- and this was before I met Lina- I got pregnant. I was probably 16 or 17. Then when I was four months along…” Mom takes a shaky breath, tears pooling in her eyes. “I lost the baby. I-I just… I just don’t want you to have to go through that. I was so scared when it happened. I thought I was going to die, with all the blood… oh, no.” The rushed whispering tones of her voice somehow force me to look at Kit, and my god am I glad I did. I see her beginning to tense up, her breathing getting faster. “Kitty… Kitty, I’m so sorry… I didn’t know-”

“Just shut up!” Kit screams. She runs off and I hear a door slam.

“Shit,” I whisper. “Alright, Mom, I’m gonna let you go so I can get Kit calmed down.” I press the button to end the call and take off after Kit. I throw the door to her room open to find her curled up on the floor with her back pressed against a wall. I kneel down near her. “Kit? Kit, look at me. She didn’t know this would happen. Will you try to breathe with me?” Kit doesn’t even meet my gaze. “Oh, c’mon, Kit. Can you grab my hand? Please?” Still nothing. I feel a shy tap on my shoulder.

“Can I help?” Joan asks. 

“Go ahead, if you want to.” She gets down onto the floor right in front of Kit and helps her sit up.

“Alright, Aunt Kit, let’s try and breathe. Can we do a big breath in on 3?” Kit just stares at Joan. “Ready?” Kit nods a little. “One, two three, deep breath…” They go on for about twenty minutes, until the worst of Kit’s panic is gone.

“Do you want the notepad?” I ask her. Unsurprisingly, she nods. She’s never liked talking immediately after a panic attack. I get up and take the miniature notebook, along with a pencil, from its place on her bedside table. As soon as I hand it to her, she scrawls  _ Damien  _ across one page.

“Does he sign? Otherwise, you’re better off texting him or just waiting until you’re feeling like talking.”

_ He understands it. Can’t sign back though. _

“Okay. Give me the number and I’ll FaceTime him from my phone.” Kit scratches his phone number onto the page and hands it to me.

“Uh, hi, who are you?” Damien asks when he picks up.

“I’m Anne. Kit’s sister.”

“Oh, okay. It’s nice to meet you! I’m Damien.”

“Yeah, I know. Listen,” I tell Damien. “My sister has something important to tell you, and after what just happened with our mom… let’s just say we’re both a bit on edge. You’d better not-”

“I wouldn’t do anything to hurt her. I promise.”

“Wow. Okay, you’re nicer than I expected.”

“Raised in a good southern home. South Carolina.”

“Huh. Alright, you can talk to me later. I’m gonna give you to Kit now.”

“Hey, Kitty, your sister said you wanted to tell me something?” Kit signs to him in reply, seemingly faster than possible. “Alright, I’ll close my eyes,” he chuckles. Right on time, Joan runs into the room, holding the pregnancy test. She hands it to Kit, who nods at me.

“Okay, open them,” I say for Kit.

Damien uncovers his eyes and moves closer to the camera, squinting. He gasps. “I’m gonna be a dad… I’m gonna be a dad. I’m gonna be a dad!” he cheers. “Hey, Nate!” he yells. “Oh, sorry, my brother’s here right now.”

Another guy appears, this one fairer and with lighter hair than Damien’s dark brown. “Yeah?”

“I’m gonna be a dad!”

“You’re kidding. There’s no way you managed to get a girl  _ and _ talk her into-”

“Woah, woah, woah,” I interrupt. “There’s a fourteen-year-old in the room!”

Nate winces. “Sorry about that. Who are y’all?”

“That’s Kitty, my girlfriend,” Damien says, “her sister, Anne, and… I’m sorry, I don’t think I caught your name.”

“I’m Joan. Anne’s my mom.”

“Nice to meet you guys. I’m Nate, Damien’s younger and much more charming brother.”

“As if!” Damien argues. “Oh my god, would you look at the time! I’m sorry to cut this short, but I’ve gotta blast. Kitty, I’ll talk to you later, and it was nice meeting you guys. I’m sure we’ll be seeing each other again soon.”

“Yeah, it was nice to meet you both as well,” I say. I hang up and see a few messages from Cathy. 

_ Hey, caught a ride home. Be there in 5.  _

_ Where are you? _

_ Anne, where are you? _

_ Anne? _

_ Annie? _

_ Sorry, at Kit’s. Lunch?  _ I text back.

_ Why not. I’m assuming Joan’s with you? _

_ Yep. I’ll be home soon. _ I turn to Kit and Joan. “Alright, road trip!”

“Where’re we going?” Joan asks.

“Out to lunch with Cathy. We’ve gotta go get her. Kit, you good to go?”

Kit raises her hands to sign something, then decides against it. “Sure.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> am i writing a shitload of pregnant characters as a way to compensate for the serious baby fever i’ve got right now? wouldn’t you love to know.
> 
> i’m sorry about the way this one ended, but i don’t have enough brain cells left to write ANOTHER reaction to Kit’s pregnancy *squeals*
> 
> also, if you haven’t already, go check out my original work, Welcome to the Wheat Field.
> 
> edit: okay, i’ve really thought this through and i feel like i need to apologize for chapter eight. you guys have all the right to hate me after that chapter. i’ve thought about it, and while that chapter was definitely written in poor taste, it set up a bit for future events, so i’m keeping it in the story. my three most recent chapters for this work have all been really out of the blue (well, maybe not so much this one, considering what was discussed in chapter 6...) and i just felt like i needed to address them, but mostly chapter eight. i’m sorry to anyone who was offended by that chapter, and if you want to attack me in the comments, go ahead. i deserve to be torn apart after what happened in that chapter.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> eek i’m sorry for being inactive on this fic but this chapter was really slow to write and my motivation said “bye” a few times in the process, but i’m BACK

“I still can’t believe your sister is having a baby,” Cathy says, stirring a cup of tea. “It feels like yesterday she was crying about how scared she was to take her driving test.”

“She definitely grew up fast. And Anna…”

“Yeah, I never thought she’d settle down and have kids. Coffee or tea?”

“Tea, please. I mean, she never showed much interest in the medical field either. I guess college changed her.”

“Maybe. What day is it? My brain’s all mixed up this morning.”

“Uhhh… August 5th- holy shit!” 

“Anne, quiet please. I think Joan’s still asleep.”

“No, Cathy, it’s August 5th, don’t you remember what that means?”

Cathy thinks for a minute. “You know what? I have to admit, I’m drawing a blank here. I told you my brain was messed up today.”

“You’ll figure it out soon enough. I’m gonna go check on  _ our daughter _ . I seriously doubt she’s still asleep.”

Cathy gives me a blank look before realizing what she forgot. “It’s August 5th! Is Jane still bringing a cake tonight or do you need to go pick one up from the store?”

“I don’t know. Call her. You’ll probably want to start cooking here in a couple hours, though.” Nearly out the door, I turn around. “Who’s all coming tonight, anyway?”

“Umm… I don't know off the top of my head. Your moms and Kit, obviously, and I think Anna was planning to stop by, but other than that I have no clue.” Cathy pulls a mug out of the cabinet and stops to think before taking out another. I walk out of the kitchen and up the stairs to Joan’s room.

“You do know you can come out of your room whenever you want, right?” I ask. Joan stares up at me from her floor for a second, then returns to sketching. “You didn’t forget what day it is, did you?”

“No,” she replies. “I also didn’t forget that you invited the entire neighborhood to a party tonight.” Her voice has a sour tone to it. 

“Joan, what’s the matter?”

“Nothing,” she grumbles. 

“Something is obviously not right. And don’t make me go get Cathy.”

Joan sighs. “Fine. I don’t want to have a stupid party.”

“Okay. Is there something you’d rather do?”

“I don’t know. Maybe just dinner with Abuela and Grandmama and Kit?”

“I think we can arrange that. Any certain food you want?”

“No, anything’s fine with me. I just don’t want a party. Too many people.”

“That’s okay, I get it. One of my friends from out of town is probably gonna stop by, though, just a warning. Do you wanna go downstairs now, get some breakfast?”

“Yeah.” Joan giggles. “I don’t know why, but drawing makes me hungry.”

“Huh. Yeah, that’s kinda funny. I’m sure Cathy’s started cooking by now.” Sure enough, the kitchen is filled with the sound of sizzling batter.

Cathy looks up when she sees us. “Hey, Joan! You hungry?”

“Really hungry. What’re you making?”

I peer over at the bowl of leftover batter. “Unicorn pancakes?” I observe.

“What are unicorn pancakes?” Joan asks.

“They’re basically regular pancakes with sprinkles mixed in,” I explain, “and we usually put whipped cream on top. I came up with them pretty soon after Cathy and I got married, but I’m a pretty bad cook.”

“So I took over all the cooking, pancake-related or otherwise,” Cathy adds.

“She did,” I agree. “I don’t think I’ve touched a stove in three years. Anyway, we usually have unicorn pancakes when we’re celebrating something. And today, we’re celebrating…”

“Me!”

“Exactly. So, Joan Parr-”

“I think I could get used to hearing that,” Cathy interrupts.

“Me too,” I agree. “Joan, being the person we’re celebrating, you get first pick on pancakes.”

“Really? she asks. I nod. Joan grabs two pancakes from the stack and sits down at the table. Cathy grabs a few as well and settles herself next to Joan. 

“So, Joan, my lovely daughter...”

Joan buries her face in her hands. “Cathy! You’re embarrassing me!”

“We’re your moms now, baby,” I say. “We’re allowed to embarrass you.”

Joan sighs, then turns back to Cathy. “You were saying..?”

“Are you ready for your party tonight?”

“Oh, uh, funny you should ask…”

“What?”

“I don’t want a party. Let’s just have a few people over for dinner and call it good.”

“Okay. If that’s what you want. I’m not gonna force you to meet a bunch of strangers.” 

At six o’clock, a knock comes at the door. I open it, expecting to see Mom and Mama or Kit, but Anna is on the other side. I wrap her into a hug as best I can, given the size of her belly. 

“Good to see you again,” I say.

“Anytime. I didn’t know if I was supposed to bring anything, but there’s some of my mom’s strawberry pie in this bag.”

“Oh, I think we’ll be able to get some use out of it. How’s your mom doing, anyway?”

“She’s good, she still thinks I live too far away.”

“Is she still in Sheridan or did she move again?”

“Nope, she’s still there, same house and everything. It’s an hour or an hour and a half drive from Evanston.”

“Makes sense, Evanston’s about two hours from here. Anyway, come on in, I can give you a tour of the house real quick. Cathy’s still finishing up on dinner.”

Anna steps inside. “That’d be great. How’s Joan doing? Recovering well?”

“She’s doing quite well, all thanks to her wonderful doctor. She’s got about a month now before she starts school again.” Almost as soon as I shut the door, there is another knock. I open the door again to see Kit.

“Anna!” she exclaims, throwing her arms around Anna. “I see you’ve had quite the exciting year. When’re you due?”

“December 18th,” Anna says proudly.

“It’s gonna be here before you know it. I just found out a couple days ago that I’m pregnant.”

“You? No way.” 

Kit nods. “It’s true.”

“Oh, Kit, congratulations! You’re gonna be a great mom.”

“I sure hope so. What’re you doing these days?”

“Pediatric neurology and neurosurgery over in Evanston. What about you?”

“Working on a psychology degree.”

Mom and Mama step in, not even bothering to knock. “We brought presents!” Mama sings.

“And cake!” Mom adds.

I sigh. “You guys! You bought her, like, ten presents.”

“We bought seven, actually, but only five are for Joan,” Mama explains, like that makes it any better.

Anna leans over to me. “Was I supposed to bring a present?” she whispers.

“You didn’t have to,” I reply, “but these two always go heavy on the gifts.”

Kit leans in. “I have a present in my car that I can go get, but it’s gonna be pretty obvious what it is.”

“Just leave it out there for now. I can grab it after dinner.” I turn back to Mom and Mama. “You guys can leave those in the living room for now.”

After dinner, Mama totes all the presents out from the living room and into the dining room while Cathy retrieves a present from Kit’s car. Most of what she gets is clothing of some sort, but the final bag she is given by Mama and Mom contains an iPad and an Apple Pencil. From Kit, she gets a ukulele, and Anna gives her a $20 bill. Once Joan opens all those presents, Mom passes Cathy and me identical boxes, which both contain a shirt that reads “Mama Bear.”

“Alright, Joan, there’s one more present for you,” I say while Cathy gets it from upstairs. When she comes back, she sets it on the table. Joan tears the paper off of the box to reveal an iPhone box.

Joan jumps up to give Cathy and me a hug. “Thank you,” she whispers.

“You’re welcome, baby,” Cathy replies. “It’s not the newest model, but it’ll do its job, and maybe you can make friends online!”

“Still, thank you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yep unicorn pancakes are definitely my new parrlyn thing (go read till the end of time if you want the ORIGINAL unicorn pancakes)


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hehehe ok it’s SHORT as HECK but at least it exists.

I shake off my umbrella and step inside. As soon as I bend over to untie my shoes, there’s a knock at the door. It’s Kit. 

“Annie,” she cries, “Annie, I lost my job. I’m gonna get evicted, ‘cause I still have to pay for food and textbooks, and I’ve still gotta go to the doctor and therapy and...and...”

“Kit, come in. It’s raining. You can stay here. We’ve been looking for something to do with our basement, it can be your apartment now.”

“Really? You mean it?”

“Totally. And you don’t have to pay for anything till you get back on your feet.”

“Wow. I guess...tomorrow I can come help fix it up, and then-”

“I’m gonna stop you there. I have to work tomorrow. The only reason I’m not at the hospital right now is I just finished an insanely long call shift and they begged me to go home.”

Kit slaps me playfully on the arm. “You workaholic. When’s your next day off?”

“Well, I’m off this weekend. We’ll get furniture and stuff on Saturday and put it all up on Sunday, then you can move your stuff in after that.”

“Sounds good.”

“Oh, and I’m not a workaholic. I just love my job!”

“Yes, of course,” she says sarcastically. “I’m sure Joan and Cathy would agree with that.” I open my mouth to say something, but she has a point.

The next two days pass quickly, both at work and at home. There’s gossip that a few of the nurses are going to be let go, but I’m completely unaffected by it, at least for now. At home, Joan is busy with online school, and when she’s not doing anything for school, she’s drawing. 

On Saturday, Kat comes over, as planned. We go down to the basement, which Cathy has been meticulously cleaning, and survey the space. It’s a finished basement, with a carpeted floor, so we don’t need to worry about huge projects like drywall or flooring.

“I think I could make do with a bed, a dresser, a nightstand, and maybe a shelf. I really don’t need much,” Kit tells me.

“Well, you’re not gonna need a kitchen, and there’s already a living area and a bathroom down here… so, yeah, I’d say you’d be set with that stuff,” I reply. “Ready to go look?”

“Totally.”

We drive to IKEA, and the whole process is fairly easy, unlike the trip four months ago with Cathy. Kit picks out what she needs and we’re out of there within about two and a half hours. 

The next day, Kit comes over again, the trunk of her car full of stuff. Clothes and shoes, she says. She expects to have all her stuff fully moved within the week. 

Putting up the furniture goes smoothly, save for the twenty times Cathy hits her thumb with a hammer or gets her shirt stuck in a screw. When it’s all finally said and done, we have a fully functional bedroom in our basement, and Cathy and Joan start hauling Kit’s stuff in. By the end of the day, after at least three trips to Kit’s apartment, we’ve managed to get everything at least down to the basement if not put away, and we celebrate by ordering pizza.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my brain is going ew to present tense so this is the last present tense chapter k thanks for coming to my ted talk


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> guys! i’m here! wooo!  
> things are gonna get iNtErEsTiNg now

There was a knock at the door. Cathy answered it, and Damien stood outside. “I don’t believe I’ve met you yet. I’m Damien,” he said, holding out his hand.

Cathy took it. “Cathy Parr. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you.”

“And the same to you. Are you a friend of Kitty’s?”

“Her sister-in-law. Anne’s wife. How do you feel about Kit’s pregnancy?”

“Oh, I’m very excited. And I’m happy she kept the baby.”

“What other choice did I have?” Kit said, coming up the stairs. “I’m not exactly the one to kill a helpless baby.” Damien opened his mouth to say something but Kit raised a hand to stop him. “Nope. I don’t wanna hear it.”

Damien crossed the room to her. “Well, let me just say you look beautiful.”

“Thanks,” Kit replied, wrinkling her nose. “I definitely feel beautiful as well.”

“How’s the baby?” he asked.

“They won’t let me sleep between feeling like I’m about to throw up and all the kicking. Speaking of, Cathy, do you have some ginger ale or something?”

“Not sure, let me check real quick.” She set off, rummaging through cabinets and in the fridge.

“Kit, Damien, come sit down,” I said. They came over to the table, where he pulled out a chair for her. I raised my eyebrows. “Looks like chivalry isn’t dead after all,” I commented. Damien didn’t reply, only smiled at me. After a bit of silence, I spoke up again. “So, Kit, have you thought about names for the baby?”

“Hmm...no, not really. I’ve always liked the name Stella, though. Grace is pretty as well...”

“I have a bit of a soft spot for Stella. I had a little sister named Stella.”

“You never talk about her,” Kit said. “What’s she like?”

“No, no, she...she’s gone now.”

“What happened to her?” I asked. “If you don’t mind saying, that is.”

“She had some cardiac issues,” Damien said sadly. “She was only thirteen when she passed.”

“How old were you?” Kit questioned.

“I was fifteen, almost sixteen. She and Nate were twins, but we were inseparable. She told me she couldn’t wait until I got my license, then we could drive around town singing along to the radio. My parents got me a red mustang that year, a convertible, and every day I just thought about how much Stella would’ve loved it.” He stopped. “Y’know what, Kit? You remind me a lot of her.”

“Really?” Kit asked. 

Damien nodded. “Yeah. You both have that cute habit of chewing on your lip when you get nervous, and your eyes light up whenever you see something you like... just the little things like that.”

“Maybe that’s what we’ll name the baby, if they’re a girl, anyway,” Kit decided.

A few hours later, Mom and Mama walked into the kitchen, having stopped by unannounced. Damien smiled at the sight of them. “Oh, you must be Anne and Kitty’s older sisters! I’m Damien.”

Mom giggled. “How charming! But really, we’re their moms.”

“I’m assuming you’re the father of Kitty’s baby?” Mama asked.

“Yes, ma’am, I am. And I hope you won’t judge me too harshly right away, I really do-”

“Yeah, yeah.” Mama waved him off. “Stuff it, prettyface. You’ve gotta earn your place in this family.”

“What’d they all do to earn their places, then?”

“Well, Jane’s my wife, we’ve been married for almost 25 years...” Mama was interrupted by cheers, since this year is her and Mom’s 25th anniversary. “Anne and Kitty needed a family, I found them half-asleep in a train station. Cathy is Anne’s wife, they’ve been married for five years now, and Joan is their daughter. Cathy’s family... well, Cathy’s family is shit, at least her mother is, I’ve never met any of her siblings. Joan came from an abusive home and warmed right up to us. The truth of the whole thing is, whether they knew it or not, they needed a new family. If you’re ready to be part of that family, then by all means, we’re happy to have you. But, if I see my Kitty heartbroken again... let’s just say you’ll be disappearing.”

Damien looked confused. “Disappearing?”

Mama patted him on the shoulder. “I’ll spare you the details.” 

The confused look remained on Damien’s face for a few more minutes, then a wave of realization passed over him. “Sorry,” he said. “I’m a little slow today, it was a long drive.” 

“That’s quite alright, dear,” Mom reassured him. “It’s great that you drove here to be with Kitty.”

I heard Kit gasp from across the table. “What’s wrong?” I asked.

“The baby’s kicking!” she exclaimed.

Damien rushed over to her and put his hands on her belly. Mom got out her phone and started taking pictures. 

“No pictures,” Kit moaned.

“It’s your baby’s first kick! We have to get pictures!” Mom argued.

“Besides,” Mama reasoned, “you’re the first Aragon-Seymour to be pregnant!”

“What about-” I began.

“We won’t talk about that,” Mom interrupted.

“Anyway,” Damien stepped in, changing the subject, “Kitty and I have an announcement.”

Mama raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”

“We’re moving in together!” Kit exclaimed.

“Aw, you’re moving out?” Joan asked.

“No, Damien’s moving in here,” Kit clarified. “So long as that’s okay with the other people who live here.”

“I’m fine with it,” I said, and Cathy nodded. “Joan?”

“I don’t have a say in this.”

“Sure you do,” Cathy replied. “You live here too.”

“As long as Aunt Kit is staying here, I’m cool with it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yeet


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hehe brain go brrrr

Annie, baby? You okay?”

I turned to look at Cathy. “Yeah, I’m good. Why?”

“You looked sad,” Cathy replied.

“Get over here,” I said, waving her over.

She kissed me on the cheek. “Joan says she’s going to bed soon.”

“I don’t expect that to last long,” I said flatly.

“What do you mean?”

“Forecast says it’s supposed to storm tonight.” As if on cue, the sky lit up with lightning, and about five seconds later, a clap of thunder rumbled in the distance.

All was well until the lights started flickering. Joan burst into Cathy’s and my room, all but in tears. She jumped up onto the bed and threw herself at me.

“Joan, hey, it’s alright. You’re safe,” I said.

“Anne, she’s scared out of her mind,” Cathy whispered.

“You think I can’t see that?” I replied, still whispering. “Joan, do you think playing a game would help you feel better?”

“Maybe a little bit,” Joan said.

“Okay, how about… two truths and a lie?” Cathy suggested.

“Sounds great!” I exclaimed. “I’ll go first. Let’s see here… I’ve never had a pet, my favorite food is chocolate cake, and I cut my own hair in seventh grade.”

“The first one!” Joan guessed eagerly.

“I’m also going to go with the first one,” Cathy ventured. 

“You’re both wrong!” I said. “My favorite food is chocolate  _ ice cream _ .”

“Damn it!” Cathy hissed.

“Swear jar,” I chided.

“We don’t even have a swear jar!” 

“Cathy, I think it’s your turn,” Joan interrupted.

“Okay,” Cathy replied. “I’ve never pulled an all-nighter, I jumped out of a tree when I was four, and I killed my sister’s fish.”

“The second one,” I answered.

“Umm… the third one?” Joan guessed.

“Anne’s right,” Cathy said.

“Whose fish did you kill?” I wondered.

“Ella. I was nine, she was seven and a bitch.”

“Keep this up and we’re going to have a swear jar,” I warned.

“Okay, my turn!” Joan quivered with excitement. 

“Go ahead, sweetheart,” I encouraged her.

“Uh… I have an older brother, I’m asexual, and I know 4 songs on the ukulele.”

“I know for a fact the third one is a lie,” Cathy said. “I’ve heard you play at least ten different songs.”

“Correct!” Joan replied.

“Which means…” Cathy trailed off.

“You’re ace?” I finished for her. Joan nodded. “Sweetheart, that’s amazing! Thank you for telling us.” I reached my arms out, then stopped myself. “Can I hug you?”

“Yeah,” Joan said. I gave her a big hug. “Thank you for accepting me,” she added.

“Joan, I want you to know that we will always,  _ always  _ accept you for who you are,” Cathy assured her. “And we’ll always be in your corner if anything happens.”

“Do you know what your romantic orientation is yet, or are you still trying to figure that out?” I asked. 

“I think I’m probably aromantic as well. I’m not entirely sure yet, though,” Joan replied.

I nodded. “That’s perfectly valid. Take your time to figure it out.”

“When’s the next time we’re gonna go to Abuela and Grandmama’s house?”

“Two weeks or so,” Cathy said. “Why do you ask?”

“I wanna tell them as soon as possible.”

“Have you told Aunt Kit yet?” I inquired. 

“Yeah.” Joan blushed a bit. “She was the first one I told.”

Eventually, Cathy and I convinced Joan to go to bed. Right after she went back to her room, we went to sleep.

My rest was cut short by Kit shaking my shoulders at around three in the morning.

“What do you want?” I hissed.

“I need to tell you something,” Kit replied. 

“Go for it.”

“I don’t think I’m straight.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry it’s so short my brain is saying no to words right now. but let it be known that joan is my lil uwu bean


End file.
